It's [not] coming home

What Southgate shows us about leadership ahead of SM&CR

· Our thoughts,SMCR,Leadershiip

Amidst the woes of Brexit, England fans turned to a Saviour- Gareth Southgate - in order to 'bring football home'.

Although football didn't 'come home', Southgate will probably go down in history, not only because of the significant progress the England football team has made but because of the exemplary leadership he has demonstrated.

Leadership is the theme in financial services also, as the FCA rolls out its plans to create a Senior Managers Regime that transforms how accountability works across the industry. As leaders review the hot-off-the-press rules for the Senior Managers & Certification Regime (SM&CR), the question of what this new level of accountability might mean for them is front of mind.

And so our minds turn to Southgate, who evoked so much hope. We couldn’t help wondering what gems this successful, principled and modern leader, can offer the ‘Senior Managers’ of tomorrow.

1.

Cultivate a culture of healthy accountability

Every member of Southgate’s team knows where their role starts and ends. In a high pressure environment, that clarity can be invaluable in making sure the team is the perfect machine.

It is for this very reason the FCA is encouraging senior managers to divide up their roles and state what they will be held accountable for. Yet such transparency can be uncomfortable. What can the culture Southgate created teach us about softening the blow?

Firstly the England manager takes his share of responsibility and in that way already sets an example. If you don't know that leaders eat last, it's time to check out Simon Sinek's video.

But crucially Southgate also shares the credit and he takes this to a new level. Even those people not standing on the pitch are in his mind when it comes to the thank yous. Southgate understands the value that everyone in this campaign has brought to the table and so mistakes and errors are viewed in the round.

2.

Learn from failures as well as successes

The impact of Southgate’s penalty experience from Euro ’96 in his preparations has been well-covered by the media. The previous version of SM&CR, as rolled out to dual-regulated firms, created a wealth of lessons for firms to use. The biggest of which is perhaps who to involve in the process. This is not a regulatory change that can meaningfully be rolled out by compliance alone.

Talk to any of the institutions that went through SMR and they will tell you that to be successful, engagement from across your firm is key. In particular, the project should be co-led by HR and Legal as well as compliance if you are to stand a chance at embedding the new rules in the way that makes most sense for your business.

That’s reflected in how we will be rolling out our SM&CR change projects for clients. Not only will they have access to our regulatory change expertise but also to our Employment department and our Governance consultancy colleagues at BWB.

3.

It's all about the preparation

While we're talking penalties, these can often be the most heart-racing and game-changing part of the match. It’s no surprise that Southgate made England devise and go through a strategy for penalties months ahead of the games.

To have a team and strategy that can truly handle the SM&CR roll out, firms need to start preparing sooner rather than later. Once normal service resumes after the football, it's a good time to think about what shape your strategy needs to take and where the key areas of weakness are for you to work on.